TEXAS SCHOOLS BREAKING THE BANK TO PAY FOR TEACHER RAISES
Story by Brian Lopez – The Texas TribuneAfter Texas lawmakers ended this year’s regular legislative session without setting aside money for teacher raises, some school districts are finding ways to give salary increases, even if it means dipping into savings accounts.
Across the state, school districts in Fort Worth, Frisco, Austin, and Smithville are adopting deficit budgets, where expenditures outweigh revenue, to provide teachers with modest raises. San Antonio Independent School District is giving its teachers raises between 3% and 9% and paying for them by slashing administrative jobs.
The move will leave many districts with deficits of well over $1 million.
Though the average teacher salary in Texas has increased over the past decade, it has not kept up with inflation. And after the pandemic, teacher shortages have left those in the profession with overtime work and larger classroom sizes.
Lawmakers didn’t approve extra money this year to help schools balance their budgets or pay for raises, despite having an unprecedented $32 billion surplus in their hands — even after Gov. Greg Abbott commissioned a task force last year to improve teacher pay and retention.
The political fight over school vouchers derailed the only school funding bill that had a chance of passing. Yet some hope still remains as lawmakers remain in Austin for overtime legislative sessions in which they’re debating property taxes and Abbott is expected to call a third special session to push for school vouchers once more.
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